Ruby Taylor, former beauty pageant queen, is tricked into entering an overweight, lazy golden retriever into a dog show. She is determined to win the show for the dog's owner, but will the moody judge, Spencer Wilson, stand in her way?

Golden retrievers and an enemies to lovers story, what more could you want? I think that a story revolving around a dog show competition is such a fun concept. I loved the main dog, Wheezy, and he reminded me of my two golden retrievers in a lot of ways. Unfortunately, this book missed the mark for me, and I did not connect with the characters. It was a very strange blend of family drama, finding oneself, and romance, and the combination just didn't quite work. The first half of the book was very slow, and I was not drawn into the story immediately. The only character I really enjoyed was Eva and she wasn't even a main character. Give me a follow up story about Eva and her family!

A former beauty pageant contestant is coerced to enter a “pure bread” golden retriever into the local dog show. One of the judges is not going to have it, but Ruby’s determined, unrelenting nature will push her to enter the dog and win the show.

I like this book a lot more than I thought I would. It hooked me from the beginning with Caleb’s character, he was fun and eccentric. Then you get to know the dog, Wheezy, whose stubbornness adds so much to the story. The main characters, Ruby and Spencer, were not as memorable as the supporting characters, but they grew on me. I think one of the main things was that I felt Ruby was too sexualized. She drove Spencer to do things with her body and I felt that rather degrading. Like all those years as a pageant star and showing off her body it’s all she felt she had, but she didn’t want people to think of her that way, yet she flaunts it when she wants something because she know it will work. I also don’t think the title fits the story well. The cover is great! And again… I loved the story! It was an easy and entertaining read. Made me laugh in so many places. A true romantic comedy.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for this ARC. This might be a fun book club read, a good deal to unpack.

Ruby is a former beauty queen who works in an old folks home. One of the patients had conned her into entering her dog, Wheezy, in a dog show.Spencer is a veterinarian and a judge in the contest. He also has a twin brother out on probation who has offered to train Wheezy. But Wheezy is untrainable. As Ruby tries to get Wheezy in shape, the more futile it becomes clear. But that only brings out the competitiveness and drive of the former beauty queen. And that will and strength of character are what Spencer begins to fall in love with.
What a sweet, fun book. The cast of characters includes an octogenarian who makes pot banana bread, a mother who saved everything pageant related from Ruby’s childhood, a twin brother under house arrest who has put duct tape across the floors so his brother Spencer doesn’t cross onto his half of the house.
However it does not stand out enough for me to guarantee the budget to purchase for my patrons.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book! I've never read anything by Lucy Gilmore, but this book was a fun and sexy read! Definitely recommend to dog show lovers. 3.5/5